History

The first permanent European settler arrived in the area in 1826, and Alexander Chamberlain immediately established the pioneering ethic of self-reliance and hospitality by building a cabin and providing overnight shelter to travelers. Colonel John B. Duret proposed that the settlement be named for Captain Logan, a Shawnee Indian who had been a friend to the settlers. Chauncey Carter, John Tipton and another early settler, Hugh McKeen, agreed with Duret, but suggested the word "Port" be added because of the town's unique location between the rivers. Hence the name Logan's Port, or Logansport.

The year 1828 was a significant one in the town's development, when the forest was cleared from what is now the downtown area. Seemingly overnight a thriving commercial center sprang up. Logansport grew rapidly in the mid 1800s due to its transportation facilities. The Michigan Road, constructed between the Ohio River and Lake Michigan, passed through just as it does today. By 1837, the Wabash and Erie canal originating in Toledo, Ohio, had reached Logansport. In 1840 the canal crossed the Eel River by means of an aqueduct, following the paths of today's Fifth Street, Erie Avenue and Water Street on its way to the Ohio River. This canal, built mainly by German and Irish immigrant laborers, spurred Logansport's early growth and development.

In 1855 the first locomotive chugged through town, launching a permanent love affair between Logansport and trains. Less than twenty years later, the canal was obsolete and abandoned because of the "new" transportation. By the early 1920s, Logansport was a railroad town through and through, with some 3000 persons employed by the railroads and handling more than 225 trains each day. Today the railroad era is celebrated at the annual Iron Horse Festival and The Logansport and Eel River Railroad Museum. With the same fervor that moved its earliest settlers to build their cabins, inns and stores, today's residents work diligently toward a well planned tomorrow while thoroughly enjoying life today.